The French Double Standard on Fighting Terrorism

Despite its oft-stated determination to fight terrorism, France has struggled to establish an effective intelligence system and adequate legislation to combat Islamist terrorism, in part due to fears of upsetting its large Muslim population. French sensitivity to Muslim public opinion has led to the creation of a double standard regarding Israel’s fight against terrorism. France’s own fight against Islamist terrorism is viewed as justified, but Israel is to be condemned for fighting Hamas and Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip.

The North Korean Nuclear Program: The End of CVID?

The Biden administration has accepted the fact that CVID—the complete, verifiable, and irreversible dismantling of the North Korean nuclear program—will not occur under the Kim Jong-un administration. The time has come to find other realistic options.

The Need for a Congressional Inquest into America’s Longest War

Events in Afghanistan have come full circle, with the Taliban—whose government fell to US military advances in 2001 —regaining power and taking possession of large stores of US arms and ammunition. The culpability of the four successive US administrations that waged this fruitless 20-year war, culminating in an abject political and military capitulation, must be investigated and exposed.

Saudi Social and Economic Changes Require a Delicate Balancing Act

Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman’s vision for the kingdom’s future will have to toe a fine line between redefining the Saudi social contract and the danger of creating new grievances.

ISIS and Its War on the Taliban

The attack by ISIS on Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul at the end of August targeted both the American “crusaders” and the Taliban, demonstrating the group’s unwillingness to cooperate with potential Islamist partners as well as its determination to advance toward its global goals (“Caliphate Now”) all by itself.

The Ever-Growing Iranian Cyber Threat

The Iranian regime has been a considerable threat to global cybersecurity ever since 2012, when it committed cyberattacks on US financial institutions in retaliation for the high-profile Stuxnet attack on its nuclear program. In the wake of the Stuxnet attack, the Tehran regime vastly ramped up its cyber capabilities, transforming itself from a third-tier cyber power into one that poses a serious threat.

The Folly of the “Economy for Peace” Thesis

Much like the Oslo illusion, which posited that territorial concessions to the PLO would bring about peace with the Palestinians, the hope that economic easing in the Gaza Strip will moderate Hamas terrorism is a mistaken attempt to apply a Western logic of conflict management to a Palestinian enemy whose definition of the end of the conflict with Israel is not in the West’s political-cultural lexicon.

Afghanistan’s Woes Will Haunt America

The American decision to leave Afghanistan to lessen the burden on the domestic economy, protect US troops, boost the nation’s security, and put an end to the “Forever War” in the Middle East has delivered the opposite of all those objectives and made the world a more dangerous place.

The Greek Defense Industry in the 21st Century: Hope at Last?

Greece is not generally considered a country with a burgeoning defense industry, but 2020-21 saw it execute a remarkable turnaround.

Afghanistan Has Lessons for the Gulf

The Gulf states will closely monitor the way Russia and China handle the perceived security vacuum in the wake of the US withdrawal and abandonment, for all practical purposes, of Central Asia. They wish to determine to what degree those countries might be viable alternatives for a no longer reliable US security umbrella in the Middle East. They are also likely to push to strengthen regional alliances, especially with Israel.

Perspectives Papers